1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to bearings. More specifically, the present invention relates to techniques for minimizing vibratory motion induced by defective bearings.
While the present invention is described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications, applications, and embodiments within the scope thereof and additional fields in which the present invention would be of significant utility.
2. Description of Related Art
When a bearing is in operation, any imperfections in the ball (or roller) tracks may produce vibratory pulses. If these pulses occur regularly, a vibration output of a single frequency may develop. In certain applications, this oscillation is intolerable. One such application involves optical imaging from a platform stabilized by a gyroscope. The mass and high revolution rate of the gyroscope is typically such that single frequency vibratory pulses may result from any defects in the bearing or bearing track. If not damped, these pulses are transmitted along the optical train of the imaging system severely degrading the performance of the system.
As a result, system designers have heretofore found it necessary to either: 1) accept the vibration and design the system accordingly or 2) discard the bearing and/or 3) use a better, typically more expensive, bearing. Each alternative is costly. For example, a decision to accept the vibration would force some compromise in system performance or a system design which could overcome the effects of the vibration. And if the bearing is discarded, considerable costs would be incurred in removing and replacing the defective bearing assemblies.
Thus, there is a need in the art for a technique for salvaging defective bearings. There is also a need in the art for a technique for improving the yield of bearing fabrication to provide high quality bearings at low cost.